The Shampoo Bar Thread

[Neoma]

My name is Neoma and I am a shampoo bar addict. And, good addict that I am, I am suffering some serious withdrawal pangs from not being able to access the monster CV bar thread.

With that in mind, I am taking the liberty of starting a new shampoo bar thread. I deliberately entitled it this, rather than the CV Bar Thread or some variation thereof, so folks would feel free to talk about the shampoo bar of their choice.

For the uninitiated, a shampoo bar is soap based. There are two major makers that many LHC'ers use: Chagrin Valley (CV) and Prairieland Herbs (PLH). There are many other fine soap makers who make good shampoo bars, of course. My favorite is C.O.P.A. soaps.

Both the CV and PLH sites offer a good overview of what a shampoo bar is, how it works, issues that you're likely to experience with using a shampoo bar, vinegar rinses, etc. There's also an excellent article on the CV site by Claudia, one of our members: How to Enjoy a Shampoo Bar.

The original CV bar thread was hundreds of entries long. Heck, I think that it was hundreds of pages long! It included questions and answers about shampoo bar usage and shampoo bar reviews.

I'm going to close this post as the intro to what I hope will become a long, strong, information-packed thread.

[Neoma]

I thought that I'd kick this off by telling you a little about my experience with shampoo bars.

I first tried shampoo bars a couple of years ago, enabled by the above-referenced monster CV bar thread. My hair loved them the first day or so, then I ended up with a bad case of "the waxies." I tried them off and on for a few months, then threw in the towel.

A few months after I gave up on CV bars, a dear LHC friend and I had a mini-meet, and she gave me a bar of PLH. Long story short, my hair loved PLH shampoo bars, I didn't get the waxies, and a love affair with shampoo bars was born.

Just for the record, I have since gone back primarily to CV bars. I still order PLH bars from time to time. And I buy C.O.P.A. bars whenever I run across them at local street fairs.

Why do I love shampoo bars? Mainly because they give my baby fine hair body unlike any other haircare routine that I've followed. When I use shampoo bars, I can make big, fat updos that don't slip apart. The texture is indefinable.

I do have an issue with the hair on my crown sometimes when I use shampoo bars. But I'm beginning to think that has more to do with "thinning spot" at the front of my head and with changes in hair texture due to hormones than with shampoo bars.

I have a number of routines that I follow when I use shampoo bars. I'll post on them at length in another entry. But my old standby is:

• Wet my hair thoroughly
• Glide the shampoo bar over my head and the length of my hair
• Massage well
• Rinse well
• Repeat steps 1 - 4
• Pour a weak herbed white vinegar with essential oils rinse over my head (I usually don't rinse this out)

That's it for now. I'm looking forward to hearing what you have to say!

[chloeishere]

I use shampoo bars too! In fact, if you look under the "Reviews" tab, you'll see a nice little spot to review Chagrin Valley shampoo bars, if you so desire! :cough cough: I started that review, so I'd like to have a few more people on it. I'm afraid I missed something!

Anyway, I've been using CV lately, I recently tried Extra Honey, Beer and Egg, which I got like 4 months ago, and never tried. It works okay, no bad results, but I'm afraid to over-protein myself, so I'm spacing it out with my old favorite Chamomile and Citrus.
I haven't tried Prairieland Herb yet... keep intending to, but never do. I've never heard of C.O.P.A. before-- are ALL their bars appropriate for using on hair?
I did recently place an order with Serpentine Hair. Someone recommended them on TBB (Gemma?), and before I knew it, I had placed an order! I'm a sucker for a snazzy site, and they had the ingredients listed (though not the size). They haven't arrived yet, but I'll be sure to do a review as soon as I've tried them a few times.

My routine (with CV bars):
lather up reall well-- I generally only put the bar onto the areas near my scalp, lather up really well, then move the lather down my length.
Rinse thoroughly
Use citric acid rinse (1.5 teaspoons CA and 1/8 teaspoon ascorbic acid in 1.75 liters-- I don't use the whole bottle every time, obviously!)
Rinse again
Apply conditioner (right now, Trader Joe's nourish spa, mixed with a dab of VO5 pomegranate grapeseed conditioner)
Leave it a few minutes, then rinse with cold water.

I use Manor Hall Deep Conditioner as a leave-in.

Gives great hair, and yes, I've generally found my hair has more texture and body with shampoo bars!

[QueenOfTheSkye]

So, somewhere on the internet I read that one shouldn't use vinegar rinses on my hair more than once a week because they're acidic and...something else, I don't remember. But I think they're assuming that you're washing daily, whereas I wash every 2-4 days. Is there anything wrong with using a vinegar rinse every time if you aren't washing that frequently? My hair really liked the vinegar rinse when I tried it.

Oh! Yeah, the reason I'm posting this here is because I'm doing the vinegar rinse after using a CV bar. Just in case anyone was wondering about the relevance of my post.

[Annibelle]

So, somewhere on the internet I read that one shouldn't use vinegar rinses on my hair more than once a week because they're acidic and...something else, I don't remember. But I think they're assuming that you're washing daily, whereas I wash every 2-4 days. Is there anything wrong with using a vinegar rinse every time if you aren't washing that frequently? My hair really liked the vinegar rinse when I tried it.

Oh! Yeah, the reason I'm posting this here is because I'm doing the vinegar rinse after using a CV bar. Just in case anyone was wondering about the relevance of my post.

Hmmm, I'd like to know this, too. I've been doing ACV rinses twice a week for a month or so and haven't seen any damage... but I dunno.

[QueenOfTheSkye]

Hmmm, I'd like to know this, too. I've been doing ACV rinses twice a week for a month or so and haven't seen any damage... but I dunno.

I tried it, and my hair is very yucky. Dry and snaggy and nasty, though some of this is probably a function of the overall condition of my hair. I think I'll keep the vinegar rinses to a minimum, and when I do, increase the dilution.

[Kathie]

So, somewhere on the internet I read that one shouldn't use vinegar rinses on my hair more than once a week because they're acidic and...something else, I don't remember. But I think they're assuming that you're washing daily, whereas I wash every 2-4 days. Is there anything wrong with using a vinegar rinse every time if you aren't washing that frequently? My hair really liked the vinegar rinse when I tried it.

Oh! Yeah, the reason I'm posting this here is because I'm doing the vinegar rinse after using a CV bar. Just in case anyone was wondering about the relevance of my post.

A shampoo-bar, or any conventional shampoo for that matter, is basic as far as pH is concerned. As a result, it lifts the cuticles on the hair shaft. An ACV rinse is acidic, the opposite of basic, so it neutralizes the effect and smooths down the cuticles. Conventional conditioner is also acidic and does the same thing. So, I don’t think the information you read is correct. It’s ok to do ACV rinses more than once a week. At the end of the day, if it makes your hair/scalp feel good you’re doing something right.

[Lunarise]

So I just received my first three CV bars: Ayurvedic Herb, Neem & Tea Tree, and Summer Sunshine.

It's definitely different switching from CO... my hair seemed really dry after my first shampoo bar wash and the frizz was TERRIBLE. So, I used CO again the day after... and it just made my hair greasy!! (I use L'oreal Eversleek... which has worked great for the past couple months, cone and sulfate free)

Is my hair just really damaged? Because I haven't used any heat tools in MONTHS.

I need your help ladies

[Rybe]

So I just received my first three CV bars: Ayurvedic Herb, Neem & Tea Tree, and Summer Sunshine.

It's definitely different switching from CO... my hair seemed really dry after my first shampoo bar wash and the frizz was TERRIBLE. So, I used CO again the day after... and it just made my hair greasy!! (I use L'oreal Eversleek... which has worked great for the past couple months, cone and sulfate free)

Is my hair just really damaged? Because I haven't used any heat tools in MONTHS.

I need your help ladies

Did you use a vinegar rinse after? My hair feels horrible until I do, then it feels fine-great depending on the bar. I defiantly had a learning curve, so I wouldn't give up after one wash. I haven't tried any of those bars (tried to order summer sunshine and they were out ) so I can't say anything to them specifically...

Also, did you 'poo more than once? If your hair came out greasy after a CO (again, something I've never done so just theorizing) maybe it never got clean to begin with, and it wasn't really dry, it was just frizzing like a beast because of residue? I find additional 'pooings actually keep you from getting residue, counter intuitively.

[mzlbcmami]

I have never used them but I have been interested in hearing more about them and learning about them. I have SUPER thick hair so I don't need more volume, thickness, or body. What would you suggest? I have no idea what you were talking about with the abbreviations.